Guard Your Back
by blackeyesblueeyes
Summary: The Ronins are having a tough time with their new armor. Even without Talpa, threats still loom that the Ronins must fight. Will they be able to overcome the hurdles?
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Ronin Warriors or any supporting characters. Original ones are mine.

Sage meditated against the tree, though to any random bystander it looked like he was simply relaxing against it. He breathed slowly in and out, counting the breaths as his mind settled.

Or for as long as Kento would let it settle.

"Hey, earth to Sage! Ronins calling," the big guy said. Sage furrowed his brow a little but went back to counting. _One-hundred twenty-eight…one-hundred twenty-nine…one-hundre-ECK!_ He was shaken awake, and glared up at the culprit, who merely grinned down at him.

"Come on, now's not the time for meditating. We need to plan what to do this weekend. Ryo wants to train in the mountains but I say we should take a break and have some fun for a change. We've been doing that every weekend for two months straight. It's time for a change! What do you say?" Kento asked. From the look on the boy's face he was hopeful but knew what the true answer would be. _You didn't have to break my concentration for this_, Sage thought. He shifted back into position and closed his eyes.

"Discipline is important when in combat. The more the better," was his simple reply. He heard Kento sigh and mutter an "I know." The corner of Sage's mouth twitched but he breathed in and slipped back into his meditation.

At least, that's what he'd been aiming for. But the people around him began making a big fuss over something, though few actually moved towards the item of interest. Sage gave up trying to meditate and got up to stretch. Rowen was still rubbing the sleep from his eyes after Kento had shaken Sage. The boy had fallen asleep on his shoulder as mornings were not his thing. Ryo and Kento had been working on plans for the weekend and Cye was over chatting with some classmates about a project.

But all attention turned towards a group of girls entering the school grounds. They were all dressed in the Toyama High School uniform, so they were within dress code, but the girls themselves were…rather unique. One had an orange head of curly hair, from what looked to be like a failed dye job. She was stockier than the others, though by no way overweight. She munched on a steamed bun as she watched the other students.

One of the others had a head of bright, almost translucent blonde hair. She chatted with another girl, whose head was covered in a straight black mane. They were about the same height and almost identical build. The blonde girl simply had a curl to her hair that her companion did not.

The fourth girl seemed to be the shiest, as she kept her face lowered. But when a companion asked her a question, she raised her head and Sage could see she had very delicate features paired with a set of doe eyes. Her hair was aquamarine and reminded him of the sea, especially with the natural wave.

Her companion and the final girl was probably the tallest, though the lot was short to begin with. She looked rather bored and frankly, there was nothing extraordinary about her, save for the long light blue hair that was piled into a pony tail on her head. It nearly reached her waist tied up and almost covered an eye, as if to give her an air of mystery.

Sage nearly snorted. He'd used the same line that most of the girls who liked him said. That he had an air of mystery about him, since he rarely talked to girls and kept one eye covered. He was also particularly focused on his studies so he talked very little to other people. But all five of them were intense when it came to their school work. That was one of the conditions all their parents had set down before living with Mia. They had to keep their grades high and stay out of trouble at school.

The girls simply walked into the school, though they managed to part the crowd like Moses and the Red Sea. They were foreigners, no doubt in that, but this particular school got few foreign exchange students, most going for the extreme urban schools at the heart of Tokyo than those in Toyama. After the group disappeared, the gossip reached a fever pitch, many wondering where they came from and what they were doing here. The other Ronins looked at each other, Cye having long since come to join them. Sage simply gathered his things and headed for the school as the first bell rang.

The halls were mad, but the Ronin Warriors had long ago figured out how to get through the crowds without getting pummeled. It was rather uneventful getting to class today, save for the spilled water and Ryo nearly getting tripped by a student who'd slipped. He jumped out of the way just in time but the poor victim kept sliding like he was headed for home base. They helped him up, but there was little they could do to repair the social damage.

At some point, Rowen disappeared into his homeroom, while Cye and Ryo went into theirs. Sage and Kento gave a brief wave good-bye as they entered their own. Some of the girls giggled as Sage passed by but he just closed his eyes. He let his body take him to his seat in the back, and he felt Kento sit down in front of him. The bell rang shortly after and another normal school day began.

Or so he thought.

Partway through their math lesson, there was a knock on the door. The teacher quietly investigated before allowing the person to enter. Sage was slightly shocked, though his features remained set in his poker face.

"Class, we have a new student joining us today. Why don't you introduce yourself?" he asked the girl. Her hair looked more like a banner from this distance, advertising her I'd-rather-be-anywhere-else-but-here attitude. But she smiled at the teacher before turning back to the class.

"Hello, my name is Aubrey Jackson. My cousins and I just moved here from America. Please take care of us," she said, bowing.

"Thank you Ms. Jackson. Please take the seat in the back by Mr. Date. Date, could you raise your hand so that Ms. Jackson can see where to sit?" the teacher asked.

For a moment, Sage blanched. But only for a moment. No one else caught it as he raised his hand. No one except Kento that is.

She quietly walked back, not making eye contact but still managing to weird him out. It was rare for any one to weird him out, even a girl. But something about her seemed…off. He'd watched her from a safe distance before, but up close there was something strange about her.

Sitting down with an audible sigh, the girl didn't even crack her notebook but just slumped down and watched the teacher at the white board. She didn't seem interested in the lesson at all.

Sage glanced at Kento but the other boy just shrugged. He had no idea how foreigners were supposed to act but he was sure it wasn't like this.

Author's Note: Wow, it's been forever since I typed up anything Ronin Warrior related. I think after Sailor Moon, this was my first real anime. The first one I sat down and watched all 39 episodes of. I still love it. That's why I'm writing this but I'm not trying to make it Mary Sue-esque. It may seem that way right now but Ms. Boredom does not fall for Sage. I just didn't know who or how to open the story. Criticism is welcome, though best if it's constructive. I'm sorry if this first chapter is boring, I didn't know how to begin the story.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own the Ronin Warriors or any of the characters. Original ones are mine.

The day seemed to drag on, even though they'd only gotten to lunch. But Kento was all too happy to get out of his seat and stretch his legs. Not to mention he'd get to eat too.

He and Sage wandered back to the old tree in the front of the school, students milling over the grounds or chatting as they ate their lunches. Kento plopped down at the base of the tree and dug into the box that had been prepared for him. Mia sometimes made them boxes on days like today. But often times, they had to fend for themselves. The others soon joined them, in no hurry to rush the welcome albeit brief interruption from their day.

"So, do any of you have the new girls in your classes? We've got Aubrey, the one with the long hair," he said. Sage tensed a little before relaxing, trying to ease out of the weirdness that had encroached on his mellow. Cye made a motion with his chopsticks that indicated they had two in their class.

"The red head and the blonde. What about you Rowen? One or both of the last two in your class?" Ryo asked. The Strata warrior looked up at the mention of his name but shook his head. "Means the last two are either in another class together or separated between the two."

"Why are we even talking about them?" Sage snapped. They all stared at the Halo warrior, who colored slightly at his outburst.

"Easy Sage. It's the hot topic of the day. Plus, that one girl has managed to knock you off your mojo and she hasn't even done anything. Most Netherrealm spirits can't do that on their best day," Kento said.

"There's just something…off about her. It's not that she's giving off an evil aura but there's just something about her that's different," Halo said.

"Well duh, she's foreign. They're Westerners, Americans. We don't know them any more than they know us. It's probably going to take them a while to get used to how things are done around here," Kento offered. Sage rolled his eyes.

"Kento's right. I'm sure after a while they'll settle in and you'll hardly even notice them," Cye chimed in. It seemed to take some of the edge off and the blonde warrior visibly relaxed. It was good enough for Kento and he polished off his food.

Just as he was finishing, he looked up and spotted a familiar head of blue hair on the roof. Sure enough, the girl turned around and leaned her arms against the railing. She seemed to be staring into nothing when she must have felt his eyes on her. Looking down, she smiled and waved at Hardrock. He was shocked but smiled and waved back. Until…

"Kento? Hey what's the matter?" Ryo asked. He went to put a hand on his friend's shoulder but the boy was up and off before any of them could blink.

He raced through the halls, taking the stairs what seemed like five at a time. It was shocking that a boy of his size could move so fast but Kento could move just as fast as any track star. Any of the Ronins could, it was just a matter of putting it to use.

The boy burst through the door to the roof and had five heads turn to stare at him. He might have been out of shape, had it not been for the two months of training and the years of battling he had under his belt.

"You!" he cried, pointing an accusatory finger at the blue haired girl. She just stared at him, her look conveying nothing but calm. That was, save for the trail of smoke from her cigarette that perched precariously between her lips.

"Yeah?" she said.

"What do you think you're doing, smoking on school grounds?" he asked. He heard the rest of his friends coming up behind him, and he let a satisfied smirk creep onto his face. She just blinked, pulled it out and blew smoke out of her nose. The rest of the Ronins arrived as she took another puff.

"I like to smoke. What of it?" she said. Kento nearly balked. Had she not listened to a word he'd said? Normally, something like this didn't faze the Hardrock warrior but he'd been pulled aside by administration a number of times about fighting. Not that he'd started any fights, he had to stick to the rules laid down by his parents. Rather, people just picked fights with him mostly due to the fact that he intimidated them. He hated that he was always getting in trouble for something he hadn't done.

"Normally I wouldn't say anything, but Kento's right. There's no smoking on school grounds, not to mention the fact that you're underage," Rowen pointed out. She just continued to stare at them, as if all this information was passing over her head.

"Uh, please don't mind my cousin. She's just like that. We've tried to get her to stop numerous times but it just doesn't seem to work. Please, forgive her," the marine haired girl said, bowing. The cousin in question just snorted, earning her a glare from multiple angles. She just took another drag.

"Well, if the administration catches her, they aren't going to go easy on her. Not even for first time offenders," Cye offered.

"She's seen worse, trust us," the black haired girl replied.

"Tch, just leave her alone. She wouldn't get caught anyway. She never got caught back home, right Cathy?" the red head told them. The others looked between the two with some reserve before they seemed to reach the collective decision to give up. That just seemed to piss off Kento more.

But before he could say anything, footsteps bounced up like they were headed up the stairs. He couldn't help but grin. Now she was going to get it.

"What's all this?" the gym teacher asked. He walked around the group, examining each one closely. "You're not supposed to be on the roof. I don't expect the girls to know but you boys should. You can sit here for today, but tomorrow you'll have to find somewhere else, okay?" he said, stopping right in front of Aubrey. Her lips pulled back in a slight smile and she knodded her head. There was no cigarette to be found.

The smell must have been lingering, because the teacher sniffed a couple of times but he couldn't seem to find anything. He gave them all one last warning before heading back down the stairs. Kento watched for a few minutes before turning back to the girls. How had she done that? The teacher hadn't even found a butt.

As if on cue, her mouth opened and the lit cigarette popped back out. The boys looked shocked, while the girls looked ashamed. Apparently, this wasn't the first time they'd seen this particular…talent.

She took one final drag before tossing the cigarette and crushing it with her shoe.

"Happy?" Aubrey offered.

"How-"

"Years of practice."

"Ugh, that is not something to brag about at sixteen, Aubrey," the blonde threw over her shoulder. Their nicotine toting companion bent over and retrieved the butt, wrapping it in a napkin. She headed over to the door, but stopped for a moment when the red head offered her a steamed bun.

"Thanks Anna," she said, heading down the stairs. The boys couldn't do anything except stare. Kento turned back to the other girls who were finishing up their lunches.

"Uh, can I ask what all that was about?" he asked the girls. The red head turned to look up at him, an eggroll half sticking out of her mouth.

"Aumrey?" She quickly chewed and swallowed her food. "She's been through some rough patches in her life, so not much fazes her now. Like Madeline said, please don't mind her." She stood up and brushed the invisible dirt off her skirt before offering her hand. "I'm Anna Robins. The blonde is my cousin, Heather Thomason, her twin sister is the raven, Catheryn Thomason, and my other cousin, Madeline Baker, the apologetic one. I believe Heather and I have class with Cye and Ryo, and I think your friend there mentioned your name was Kento." The poor boy was overwhelmed with all the information flying around his head. After a moment he shook the offered hand and couldn't help but welcome the smile she gave him.

The bell rang just then, breaking the tension that had built despite their attempts to keep it at bay. The girls quickly shook hands with all the guys before apologizing and throwing a "we'll have to talk later" over their shoulders as they ran down the stairs. The boys quickly followed, as they too had to get back to class.

"So what do you make of them now?" Sage whispered to Ryo.

"I'd have to agree with why you've been so tense. These girls really are weird."

Author's Note: Ah yes, the tension. Let it build and the story will come. And what's this? A character that smokes? Why yes and I'm enjoying it. Please review.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ronin Warriors or its characters. The five girls are mine.**

Cye was tired, the sweat dripping down his brow and a particularly evil drop landed in his eye. He only had enough time to blink it away before blocking Ryo's strike. The black-haired boy was getting stronger by the day and Torrent could feel it pressing down on him.

They'd been training like this for two months, trying to get used to their new armor. While it was lighter than their old armor, it was an ancient design and they were still finding weak spots that needed protecting in battle. Rowen, Kento and Sage all sat off to the side, cooling down from their sessions.

The sun was high for the spring weather and while it would have been a nice day for leisurely activities, especially considering it was Saturday, Ryo was having them work on their forms and reaction times. Cye managed to put his feet under him and push Ryo back a good ten feet, almost out of the ring.

Part of the problem was that their new weapons felt different. It's not that they were wrong in any way, but they felt and weighed different. No one was immune from this new hurdle, so it was best for all of them to spar in order to gauge how much they needed to allow when fighting.

The trident in Cye's hand was quickly becoming an extension of his arm as he swung for Ryo's head, forcing the other to drop as the blades cut through the air where his neck would've been. Ryo took the second after the attack to charge, forcing Torrent to block. Cye managed to bang Ryo's wrist, forcing him to drop one blade, but the youth jumped back a step before aiming a thrust at his opponent's thigh.

There was an exposed spot between the thigh and torso and he didn't have enough time to block, so instead Cye thrust his trident right at Ryo's throat. The two stopped, just inches away from their intended hits. For a moment, neither moved. But it was all in good fun as they lowered their weapons. While all of them fought like it was a real battle, they always stopped just short of striking the final blow.

The brunette walked over to his water bottle and took a swig. The cool water was a nice reprieve from all the heat and sweat. Kento was sprawled out on the ground, basking in the warm sun, while Rowen and Sage chatted.

"Can we just go ahead and quit for the day? I mean, we've been doing this since before sun-up and I do have to help out at my parent's restaurant this afternoon," Kento whined. The others just king of…looked at him, since this wasn't the first time they'd heard this argument. He was as on board as every one else with the training, but there were times when attitude from anyone was a bit much.

Ryo sighed. "Yeah. I've got other things I need to do if I want to take tomorrow off."

This was news to the rest of them. It even made Kento sit up. Ryo was a stickler for training and would have pushed them for a few more hours until some of them absolutely had to leave. But for him to cut sparing short…well, something was suspicious about that.

A wicked grin spread across Kento's face. "Got yourself a hot date or something?" That turned the black-haired youth nearly the same color of his armor.

"No it's nothing like that! But I've been letting things take a backseat to training and school, so now seems like a good time to get them done," he said. The others looked at him, not convinced.

But Sage just shrugged his shoulder and recalled his armor and sub-armor back into its orb. "Whatever. I'm just glad to have the afternoon off." The others mumbled their agreements as they followed his example.

Suddenly, the ground shook beneath them. Considering this was Japan, earthquakes were a frequent occurrence and so one would not expect anything other than natural forces at work.

But something hit the Ronin Warriors as the rode out the tremble. It was like getting punched in the stomach while being forced to inhale sulfur and methane. But it wasn't so much the physical feelings as the wave of energy that washed over them. It was a wave made of pure malevolent energy. There was no other word to describe the evil feeling that washed over them.

The quake itself only lasted a few seconds but the boys were more than a little off kilter. Cye looked around to see that his friends were as pale as he felt. It was like all of the good and happiness had been sucked from his soul.

"What was that?" Ryo asked.

"I-I don't know, but I need a moment," Rowen said. He sat down on a stump and put his head between his knees. They weren't normally this weak, but the wave seemed to have drained all the energy from them. Not to mention it had been unexpected.

While they rested they also watched and listened, to see if anyone might pop out of the bushes or open a portal or ride a massive army of dark clouds across the sky.

But nothing supernatural appeared.

They heard the door to the house open and turned to see Mia. "What just happened?" she asked. Her voice shook and they could see that she was pale too. And they were all pretty sure an earthquake wasn't the cause of that. Perhaps during all that time fighting dimensional magic monsters, some sort of demon sense had kicked in for her. Cye gathered some strength and walked over, putting his hands on his shoulders.

"We're not sure what just happened, but seeing as how it hit everyone here pretty hard and nothing big and scary has come out to get us, we're going to rest for a bit," he told her. She looked scared but nodded.

"I'll check the news to see what they said about the quake. I'll also see if anything unusual happened or caused it," she said and went back into the house.

Cye turned back to his friends, who seemed to be recovering but still had that wary look in their eyes.

For all the big, nasty creatures that they'd fought, for all their evil, none had taken this much out of the Ronin Warriors with just an energy wave.

This might just be the fight that killed them.

**AN: HA! 'Nother chapter out! Holy crap, has it really been two years since I worked on this fic? And I've loved "Ronin Warriors" since the 90's. (It was the second anime I saw after "Sailor Moon.") I actually started this chapter years ago and got stuck. I did manage to finish it, though.**

**But yay for me for writing a chapter that didn't feature any original characters or mention of characters. Damn but this is my curse: OCs. **

**I also quite like that it sets up evil to come but the bad guys don't just pop out all of a sudden (although that's what I'd originally planned.) But I'm going to have to work on paring down this fic because it is becoming an epic (at least in my mind.) **

**Please review! And thanks for reading!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ronin Warriors or its characters. The five girls are mine.**

Rowen's hand was steady, his eyes clear. There was no wavering or hesitation. He was waiting.

The arrow flew as the wind died only for a second, but it was enough. It hit the target dead center, burying deep. For a second, nothing existed except him and the arrow. But the sound of cheering brought him back to reality and he blushed.

The other members of the kyudo club were giving him a round of applause for his hit. And while Rowen wasn't a captain or even a vice-captain, he was still one of the most valued members of the team.

He quietly bowed and gave his thanks before taking a seat off to the side. Strata sighed and watched as one of the juniors stepped up. It didn't make much sense for him to join an archery club since he practiced on his off days and he'd pretty much mastered it fighting other worldly soldiers. But kyudo was different, more about patience and focus before releasing the arrow. For him it was like meditation, which would explain why he'd spaced out.

A breeze ruffled his hair and he looked up to see that the sun was still high in the sky. Somehow the Ronins managed to maintain social lives in addition to everything else and they were off at their various clubs. He'd thought about being a part of the astronomy club or maybe taking up an instrument, but the former was a little too "obvious" and he didn't have the patience for instruments. And since becoming a kyudoka, he felt like his muscles were always in excellent shape.

Which was good because the school suddenly went black. While the archery dojo wasn't close to the school, they still had a good view of it. And so it was kind of surprising on such a warm and sunny day like this that the lights suddenly went out. There were of course some obligatory screams from startled students, but nothing he was really worried about. And the lights came on just a few moments later.

That's when the screaming really started.

He didn't even think about what he had to do before running off, stopping only long enough to grab his shoes. The screams just seemed to envelope the school, but the closest building was the gym. Students were streaming out and he had to fight to get any where close to the door. When he finally looked inside, his stomach dropped.

There were four nasty troll-like creatures, their bodies black and rough like they were made of lava rock. They had long stringy red hair, with bones and skulls weaved in. Rowen took a step inside but a smell like corpses rotting in the sun almost made him turn and follow the other students. The creatures were hunched over and grumbling but they were still about eight feet tall each and carrying some crude weapon which would be more than effective.

The Ronin grit his teeth and charged in. There was no covering up that smell and with so many people still around he wouldn't be able to even call up his sub-armor, but he wasn't about to just sit around and wait for the people to start dying.

"Hey ugly! Yeah you! Over here!" he hollered. He wasn't much of a threat he knew and they almost looked bored, but a willing target was better than one that ran away. They slowly came towards him, raising their weapons as they went. It seemed like forever for them to get to Rowen, sweat already running down his back.

When one brought down its arm, he ducked under and with his weight behind it, punched one of the uglies in the gut. It crumpled, but Rowen hissed as he pulled away. They didn't just look like rock, they felt like it too. His hand was red and swelling and he hoped that he hadn't broken anything.

A shadow fell and he looked up just as an axe was coming down on top of his head. He moved at the last second, but the axe splintered the floor and a piece struck near his eye. He closed them and knew instantly that was a mistake. Because something big was coming towards him.

When he tried to open his eyes blood trickled into it and he automatically shut them again. He could feel it getting closer, so he'd have no choice but to fight blind. That was until a loud THWACK pierced the air. Hard enough that the beast stumbled and fell.

Rowen took a deep breath, locked his feet and opened his eyes. He'd expected to find another Ronin or perhaps one of the karate club members. He did not expect to find one of the exchange students standing in front of him, poised to fight. Her blue hair was tied up and back as she crouched to center her gravity. In his half-stunned state he almost missed it when she threw something over her shoulder at him. It was a roll of tape and for a second he was confused as to what he should do with it before he saw that her fingers were covered in it.

"Well? Hurry up and put that on! I could use some help!" she yelled before ducking under a hand and planting a foot right in the stomach of the nearest creature. He quickly wrapped his hands before jumping over an open palm smack down and connecting an uppercut with the chin of another ugly. This one, like the one Miss Exchange Student had hit stayed down. Excellent. Only two left.

But when he turned back, one of the beasts had somehow gotten the girl by the leg and was swinging her around his head like a rag doll. He slammed her into the floor, chuckling as the wood shattered before yanking her up again. He was Rowen's target, if it weren't for the fourth one charging him. Strata ran full force at the one coming towards him and jumped, surprising the creature. But it couldn't have been half as surprising as the foot Rowen planted squarely in his face. He smirked as he felt bone crunch and hoped the bone fragments in his brain killed him.

He pushed off with enough force to launch himself directly into the oncoming path of the twirling figure. He used his body as cushion as she slammed into him but also used the force to tug her free of the troll's grasp. He skidded a few feet when he hit the ground panting.

"Hey. Hey," he said, shaking her a little. He took quick note that she was banged and bruised and her gymnast uniform was ripped but no obviously fatal wounds to speak of. Her eyelashes fluttered and she seemed discombobulated as she took in the state of the gym. But her eyes focused when she found his face. "You okay?" he asked.

"Ye-Yeah," she said, though she swayed a little when he put her feet down.

"Think you've got more fight left in you? I could use your help." Her grimace was quickly replaced by a snarl before finally settling on a grin.

"I've always got some fight left in me," she said and by the bunching of the muscles under her skin, she was ready to go.

"Right. You come in from above, I'll attack from below," he said. Her nod was all he needed before they split. It had taken a while for the creature to realize that it no longer had its plaything, but upon realizing where it had gone and who had taken it, he got real angry really fast and was charging. Luckily, Rowen was faster. He ran for the beast's right side, narrowly missing a swinging arm and jabbed his elbow into the beast's side as hard as he could. At the same time, he had to guess that the gymnast was some how introducing her fist to its face because the beast tipped closer to him making the elbow dig in even farther. Rowen managed to just get out of the way the thing crushed him. Ugly didn't get up.

He took big gulps of air, hands on his knees as the adrenaline and fight caught up with him. He looked over to see the gymnast doing the same.

"Thanks. For earlier. And now," he said between pants.

"No. Problem," she replied. The battle had only lasted a few minutes, but those creatures had not been easy to take down. Not to mention they'd had to take on four at once.

It was at that moment another roar echoed from the school's main building. They both stared at the door leading inside, Rowen wondering just how many more of these they might have to face. He straightened and headed towards it, noticing a moment later his companion was following him.

"You should evacuate with the rest of the students," he told her.

"And I could say the same of you," she replied. He winced when he realized that to her, he looked like just another student who'd decided to be a hero. Which gave her permission to do the same. But there was no way he was going to leave the fight unfinished nor did he feel like risking the life of a civilian even if she had helped him.

"Listen, this isn't going to get easier and it isn't going to be safe, so you should get out now_"

"While you still can? Really? That's what you're going to go with?" she smirked when he scowled at the cliché. "Listen, I handled myself and my affairs on the back streets of New York City before coming to Japan. I sure as hell can handle myself here. Or weren't you watching?" He took a moment to really look at her. While she was battered and bruised, she was also sinew and muscle due in part to gymnastics if her uniform was any indication. And she had been able to hold her own in the fight. At least most of it.

Another roar and screaming was all the convincing Rowen needed to make up his mind as he broke into a run. "I'm not going to be your babysitter."

"That's fine. I'd be insulted if you were," she said, keeping up with him as the jogged back to the main building. "And you should start calling me Aubrey if we're going to get this intimate with each other."

**AN: Ah I suck at fight scenes! There are some people out there who can but I am not one of them. At least as far as I'm concerned. But we're getting introduced to some of the baddies they'll be going up against, as well as introducing our heroines to the fight. And I'm quite pleased with the fact that while Aubrey can fight, she's not always going to come out smelling of roses. **

**Thanks for reading! And please review!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ronin Warriors or its characters. The five girls are mine.**

Anna hummed as she added her battered shrimp to the wok. She glanced at the others around her who were hard at work on their own tempura. The atmosphere of the cooking club was one of diligence and camaraderie, as there was a constant buzz in the air.

Cooking was one of the few things that the cousins were both good at and enjoyed doing. Dinner was often a big production that involved music and sometimes spirits of the alcoholic sort. But their favorite part was the sitting down and eating together because it was like having a large family dinner, something that any of them rarely got to experience back home.

Anna had joined the cooking club at school to learn more Japanese recipes. They thought they'd been prepared when they moved to Japan, but even with the state-of-the-art kitchen their house came with, things like rolls and roasted chicken weren't high on the list of a Japanese household staple.

The girl sighed. They'd only been in Japan a little more than a month and Anna already missed having quick and easy Tex-Mex. Having grown up in Texas, it was one of those things that you found any where. Turn a corner and there's another hole-in-the-wall that serves the best chimichangas this side of the border. Her stomach growled a little at the memory, making her blush as she turned her attention back to her tempura.

She jumped a little when the lights suddenly went out, although she couldn't help but roll her eyes when a few of her classmates screamed.

No, they should have saved their screaming for after the lights came back on to reveal two very large ugly beasts in the middle of the classroom.

The noise was almost deafening as people shreiked and shouted in fear, which seemed to make the trolls all the more unhappy. One hefted a very large club over its head before bringing it down onto one of the tables. Some of the students managed to flee before one of the beasts started chasing them. Although one could hardly call it chasing as it had the speed of molasses in winter what with all the obstacles in its way.

Anna dropped down behind her table, hoping neither had seen her. What exactly were those things? And where the hell did they come from? They looked like trolls but since she'd never seen trolls in anything except story books she couldn't be sure what exactly they were. All she could be sure of was that they were big, nasty and taking a whiff of the air, offensive on the olfactory senses.

A screech caught her attention, forcing Anna to peek over the side to see one of the nasty things had hold of some poor female student and looked to be crushing the life out of her. Anna grit her teeth in frustration but she was just as soft and fleshy as the rest of them.

"LET HER GO!" someone cried and the young woman watched in amazement as someone's foot connected with Ugly's head. He dropped the girl who scrambled away. It took a moment but once his head cleared, all of his attention was focused on his attacker. He moved just enough for her to recognize it as a fellow classmate. Kento perhaps?

A commotion at the front of the classroom diverted her attention and she looked to see another guy trying to keep beastie busy long enough so that students could escape. While he punched and jabbed it, the students would slink by behind his back. But it was slow going business as Ugly #2 kept slamming the auburn youth into the wall.

Anna bit her lip and growled. She should be afraid, terrified even, but having come from Texas, where everything was mountainous in proportion, it was almost nostalgic. And having five enormous older brothers to face off against had helped build up strength and confidence. But even they weren't eight-foot-tall supernatural creatures.

There was a commotion to the back and she gasped as Ugly #1 had hold of Kento by the throat and was dangling him in the air.

"Kento!" his friend cried. He must've espied him but try as he might his Ugly had him practically pinned. The girl pounded her fist on the floor and nearly kissed it when her hand slipped. She lifted it to find some spilled oil. An idea blossomed. It wasn't terribly clever and more than suicidal if it didn't work but it was worth a shot.

She leapt with the grace of a cat from the floor to the counter and picked up the wok. Carefully and quietly, she hopped the few tables over to where the auburn youth was backed against the white board. Luckily, he'd seen her coming and just as the hot oil began to cascade down the giant's head he ducked under its arm.

Ugly #2 howled in pain when the boiling oil hit his skin. But Anna wasn't finished as she slammed the wok over his head, to add insult to injury. Really it just crushed the pan but the thing did stagger some. Dazed and in agony, the troll lumbered about, trying desperately to find some relief. She hopped off the counter and hollered for the students to, "GO!" They didn't need further encouragement as they raced from the room. Anna made sure to place herself between it and the students, even though all she was wielding was a crushed wok.

Kento and…Cye, she suddenly remembered, were quickly disposing of their Ugly, but not quickly enough as hers managed to wipe enough oil from its eyes to get a good look at her and watched it put the pieces together.

Quickly, she searched the room for another weapon but all there were woks and she was pretty sure that even as sharp as the knives were, they probably wouldn't be able to penetrate the troll's thick hide. She'd gotten lucky with the oil but Anna had a feeling that she'd used up her trump card. She dropped to look under the teacher's desk, very aware of Ugly moving towards her. Thankfully, she spotted two stainless steel pots, which she hoped would hold up better.

She rose just in time for the beast to raise a hand and Kento wrap his arms around its neck. The thing flailed, pissed that something not only had hold of him but had caught him off guard. The man kept his grip though, distracting it so that Cye could punch it right in the throat. That took the fight right out of him as he wheezed before toppling over. The two youths panted, nudging it with their feet just to make sure it was down. They suddenly looked up at her, making her feel really stupid as she crouched there wielding a couple of pots.

"Uh, thanks," she said, though it did little to relieve her embarrassment. To her surprise, Cye smiled at her.

"No, we should thank you. If it weren't for your bravery and ingenuity I might not have made it to Kento in time," he told her. She felt her cheeks heat up but smiled. Kento muttered his thanks as well, though he was blushing himself.

A large boom sounded from the hallway and all three of them ran out to see more Uglies headed down the corridor.

"Listen. You need to evacuate." Kento said

"And what? You don't?"

"We can handle this because we've been trained. But you're not."

"Where exactly have you trained for this specific situation? Never mind. I have five older brothers. I can handle big dumb things." For a second he had a feeling that he was included in that list but chose to ignore it.

"Not if all you have to defend yourself are a couple of pots. You need to go, NOW." She wanted to argue, she really did, but the look on his face shut her up. He wasn't trying to dismiss her; he was genuinely concerned for her safety.

"Fine. But this conversation is far from over," she told him, poking him with a finger. She took off before she could hear his reply although she was pretty sure he might've been a little peeved. Most people were when it came to her brash, straightforward ways.

She'd only gone down a hallway and a flight of stairs before she happened upon another group. But just as she turned to run, Anna noticed that they were kind of swaying. It almost seemed like they might be chanting or something when one of them was ripped from the group to slam into the wall behind him. It made Anna jump, but if someone was trapped there was no way she'd just leave them like this. Steeling her courage, she broke into a run and used a bookcase to jump up, slamming her pots over the head of the nearest Ugly.

"Anna!" She looked down as a flash of aquamarine darted forward, then back as one of the Uglies fell over. Madeline swung the pole around like a pro, her eyes glittering and warning of danger. "I'm so glad to see you're okay," she said.

"Yeah, same here," she replied. Standing back-to-back they were able to cover the other's trouble spots. They managed to put something of a dent in the enemy's numbers but the length and intensity of the fight eventually started taking a toll. Anna's lungs were starting to burn, not to mention an insufferable stitch in her side. Sweat poured off Madeline's face and while she still stood strong, Anna could see a slight tremble in the girl's grip. Adding to that Anna's pots were beyond dented and Madeline's pole had started snapping at the ends making it shorter and shorter.

"Argh! There is no end in sight is there?" Anna cried, bringing her frying pan up to slam into a chin. If she weren't so sure it was caused by exhaustion, she would swear the things laughed.

"Geez! Don't you listen?" A troll fell forward, as the kick that Kento planted in the back of its head took it out. The girls let him and Cye take out the few that were left, giving them a moment to catch their breath.

"I did listen, but as I was leaving I came across my cousin here being cornered by a pack of the nasty beasts. I am not a self preservationist so it only made sense to help, especially since she's family," Anna said. Cye smiled while Kento snorted.

"Come on, before more of them come," he said. Anna and Madeline fell into step beside them as they headed down the stairs. That is, until Anna really looked at the boys.

"What the hell? You took the time to change?" she cried. Sure enough, they were wearing some very strange and very old fashioned clothing if the style was any indication. For a moment Kento and Cye looked sheepish, sputtering and trying to find an excuse.

They were saved from having to answer when an Ugly rounded a corner. "Finally, a distraction," Kento muttered. Anna scowled but took up a fighting stance next to him. He was about to really lay into her when the look on her face stopped him. "Uh, what?" She pointed down the hallway.

The Ugly was taking a deep, deep breath. It seemed a little odd since he looked to be belching something up. They were all confused when suddenly Anna stiffened.

"HIDE!" she screamed. Purely by instinct, they all dove for cover just as heat streaked by. "Aw hell, these things breathe FIRE!" Anna cried from her position behind a metal book shelf. Kento and Cye cringed from their place behind some lockers.

Anna yelped as the metal burned her hands. She blew on them but it was like trying to spit on a forest fire. When the wall of flame had passed she grit her teeth and took her pots in hand again, trying to ignore the pain. Everyone looked at her in concern but she shook her head.

"Let's just finish this quickly," she said and took off down the hall. She heard the others following and hoped that maybe this was the last wave they'd have to face. She wasn't sure how much more she or any of them could take.

**AN: Ah from the mind of one of my OCs. Anna is more of a carefree person, although she knows how to hold her own in a fight. I suspect growing up in Texas with five older brothers might do that. Also yes, Madeline knows how to fight. They all do in some way or another. It might not have been taught by a teacher, but they can each hold their own. **

**Thanks for reading! Please review!**


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